Ladrón Íñiguez
Encyclopedia
Ladrón Íñiguez also known as Ladrón Navarro, was one of the most illustrious noblemen of the Kingdom of Navarre
during the reign of García Ramírez (1134–50), whose accession he was instrumental in bringing about. He is regularly titled count
(comes), the highest rank in the kingdom, after 1135. He is recorded in contemporary documents with the title princeps Navarrorum (prince of the Navarrese). Between 1124 and his death he was the effective ruler of the Basque country
(Euskadi).
, his father being presumed the younger brother of Ladrón Vélaz, providing a route for the name "Ladrón" into the name pool of Íñigo's descendants. Ladrón's age can only be estimated by the witness of his sons Vela and Lope in a charter of 1135.
According to the Crónica de San Juan de la Peña the initiative in placing García on the throne following the death of Alfonso the Battler
, was taken by the bishop of Pamplona, Sancho de Larrosa, and several magnates of the kingdom, Ladrón first among them. As early as August 1134 Ladrón appears as first after the king and queen (Marguerite de l'Aigle
) in witnessing the royal donation of Jániz and Zuazu to the monastery of Santa María de Pamplona. In 1135 Ladrón was among three Navarrese homes buenos ("good men") who, at Vadoluengo (Vedadoluengo), tried unsuccessfully to negotiate a peace with Ramiro II of Aragon
, who claimed Navarre. Subsequent to this García made Ladrón conte en Pamplona (count in Pamplona
) on the same day that he dubbed
and ennobled many in the same city in preparation for the war with Aragon, which never came.
The history of the Basque señoríos
in the early part of the twelfth century is very obscure. The lordships of Biscay
, Guipúzcoa, and Álava
were in the hands of Diego López I de Haro
, a vassal of Urraca of Castile, until 1124, when he was dispossessed by Alfonso the Battler
. Ladrón appears as count of Álava in 1131, while his father was still living, and he held all three Basque lordships (Álava, Biscay, and Guipúzcoa) as a vassal of Navarre between 1135 and 1147. He is also cited as lord of Araquil, Leguín, and Estíbaliz, all under the suzerainty of García, though these Basque provinces exhibited a high degree of autonomy. He was the lord of Guevara
and the founder of the Ladrón de Guevara branch of his family.
In September 1136 Alfonso VII made him the governor of Viguera
, which may have interrupted his rule in the Basque provinces, during which his son Vela may have governed in his stead. In the period around 1140–47 he appears in the Basque country again and sometime after February 1140 he appears in possession of Aibar
. From 1143 he patronised the monastery of San Miguel de Aralar.
, Ladrón Íñiguez was first among them. Also according to Garibay, Ladrón took part in the reconquest
of Tudela
in 1114. The story of his founding the majorat
of Oñate
(which he supposedly willed to his son) in 1149, along with his wife Teresa, a daughter of the viscount of Soule
and Mauléon
, is also apocryphal.
Kingdom of Navarre
The Kingdom of Navarre , originally the Kingdom of Pamplona, was a European kingdom which occupied lands on either side of the Pyrenees alongside the Atlantic Ocean....
during the reign of García Ramírez (1134–50), whose accession he was instrumental in bringing about. He is regularly titled count
Count
A count or countess is an aristocratic nobleman in European countries. The word count came into English from the French comte, itself from Latin comes—in its accusative comitem—meaning "companion", and later "companion of the emperor, delegate of the emperor". The adjective form of the word is...
(comes), the highest rank in the kingdom, after 1135. He is recorded in contemporary documents with the title princeps Navarrorum (prince of the Navarrese). Between 1124 and his death he was the effective ruler of the Basque country
Basque Country (autonomous community)
The Basque Country is an autonomous community of northern Spain. It includes the Basque provinces of Álava, Biscay and Gipuzkoa, also called Historical Territories....
(Euskadi).
Navarrese succession
Of the Azenariz family, he was the eldest son of Íñigo Vélaz (died 1129) and Aurea Jiménez. His relationship to the Vela family is supposed on the basis of onomasticsOnomastics
Onomastics or onomatology is the study of proper names of all kinds and the origins of names. The words are from the Greek: "ὀνομαστικός" , "of or belonging to naming" and "ὀνοματολογία" , from "ὄνομα" "name". Toponymy or toponomastics, the study of place names, is one of the principal branches of...
, his father being presumed the younger brother of Ladrón Vélaz, providing a route for the name "Ladrón" into the name pool of Íñigo's descendants. Ladrón's age can only be estimated by the witness of his sons Vela and Lope in a charter of 1135.
According to the Crónica de San Juan de la Peña the initiative in placing García on the throne following the death of Alfonso the Battler
Alfonso the Battler
Alfonso I , called the Battler or the Warrior , was the king of Aragon and Navarre from 1104 until his death in 1134. He was the second son of King Sancho Ramírez and successor of his brother Peter I...
, was taken by the bishop of Pamplona, Sancho de Larrosa, and several magnates of the kingdom, Ladrón first among them. As early as August 1134 Ladrón appears as first after the king and queen (Marguerite de l'Aigle
Marguerite de l'Aigle
Marguerite de l'Aigle was a daughter of Gilbert de l'Aigle, Seigneur de l'Aigle and his wife Juliana du Perche. She was Queen consort of Navarre, by her marriage to García Ramírez of Navarre.- Family :...
) in witnessing the royal donation of Jániz and Zuazu to the monastery of Santa María de Pamplona. In 1135 Ladrón was among three Navarrese homes buenos ("good men") who, at Vadoluengo (Vedadoluengo), tried unsuccessfully to negotiate a peace with Ramiro II of Aragon
Ramiro II of Aragon
Ramiro II , called the Monk, was King of Aragon from 1134 until withdrawing from public life in 1137...
, who claimed Navarre. Subsequent to this García made Ladrón conte en Pamplona (count in Pamplona
Pamplona
Pamplona is the historial capital city of Navarre, in Spain, and of the former kingdom of Navarre.The city is famous worldwide for the San Fermín festival, from July 6 to 14, in which the running of the bulls is one of the main attractions...
) on the same day that he dubbed
Accolade
In the Middle Ages, the accolade was the central act in the rite-of-passage ceremonies conferring knighthood.-Ceremony:...
and ennobled many in the same city in preparation for the war with Aragon, which never came.
Ruling the Basque country
In 1135 King García confirmed the rights and privileges of the Diocese of Pamplona on the advice of his magnates, among whom Ladrón (comes Latro) is named first. On 2 November 1137, Ladrón witnessed the donation of Alfonso VII of León to San Millán de la Cogolla. In 1140 Alfonso invaded Navarre, including the lands of Ladrón, an event recorded in the Chronica Adefonsi imperatoris:While these battles were taking place, the Emperor was waging war in the land of King García of Navarra. He had captured some of his fortified castles and some of those belonging to Count Ladrón Navarro. This individual was the most noble of all the princes in King García's court. The Emperor devastated the land by plundering it and burning it. He also cut down the vineyards and the orchards. Count Ladrón pleaded to obey Alfonso VII in the face of this destruction. He pledged to obey him and serve him all the days of his life.
The history of the Basque señoríos
Basque señoríos
The Basque señoríos were medieval hereditary land titles over an area called señorío , recognized by a king to former basque chieftains in relation to the concept of manorialism in exchange for sworn allegiance. The Basque term is jaurerria , means "lord's country" and usually relates to the...
in the early part of the twelfth century is very obscure. The lordships of Biscay
Lord of Biscay
Lord of Biscay is a historical title of the head of state of the autonomous territory of Biscay, Basque Country.- History :The first known Lord of Biscay , Íñigo López "Ezkerra" was a lieutenant of the Kingdom of Pamplona , and this was until the Castilian conquest of Gipuzkoa in 1200...
, Guipúzcoa, and Álava
Álava
Álava is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the Basque Country, heir of the ancient Lord of Álava. Its capital city is Vitoria-Gasteiz which is also the capital of the autonomous community...
were in the hands of Diego López I de Haro
Diego López I de Haro
Diego López I de Haro was the third Lord of Biscay, and also the ruler of Álava, Buradón, Grañón, Nájera, Haro, and perhaps Guipúzcoa: the most powerful Castilian magnate in the Basque Country and the Rioja during the first quarter of the twelfth century...
, a vassal of Urraca of Castile, until 1124, when he was dispossessed by Alfonso the Battler
Alfonso the Battler
Alfonso I , called the Battler or the Warrior , was the king of Aragon and Navarre from 1104 until his death in 1134. He was the second son of King Sancho Ramírez and successor of his brother Peter I...
. Ladrón appears as count of Álava in 1131, while his father was still living, and he held all three Basque lordships (Álava, Biscay, and Guipúzcoa) as a vassal of Navarre between 1135 and 1147. He is also cited as lord of Araquil, Leguín, and Estíbaliz, all under the suzerainty of García, though these Basque provinces exhibited a high degree of autonomy. He was the lord of Guevara
Guevara
Guevara can refer to:*Amado Guevara, Honduran football player*Alvaro Guevara Mexican composer*Ángel Aníbal Guevara, Guatemalan politician*Antonio de Guevara, Spanish chronicler and moralist*Armando Guevara, Venezuelan boxer...
and the founder of the Ladrón de Guevara branch of his family.
In September 1136 Alfonso VII made him the governor of Viguera
Viguera
Viguera is a municipality in La Rioja, Spain. It includes the villages Castañares de las Cuevas, El Puente, and Panzares.-History:The earliest documentary evidence is in the Berber historian Ajbar Machmua, who told that Abd ar-Rahman I recovered La Rioja in 759, after it having been conquered by...
, which may have interrupted his rule in the Basque provinces, during which his son Vela may have governed in his stead. In the period around 1140–47 he appears in the Basque country again and sometime after February 1140 he appears in possession of Aibar
Aibar
Aibar - Oibar is a town located in the province of Navarre, in the autonomous community of Navarre, northern Spain.-External links:*...
. From 1143 he patronised the monastery of San Miguel de Aralar.
Legends
According to a probably apocryphal story reported by Esteban de Garibay y Zamalloa in his Ilustraciones Genealógicas de los Catholicos Reyes de las Españas, when García VI created twelve peers in Navarre in imitation of the twelve peers of FrancePeerage of France
The Peerage of France was a distinction within the French nobility which appeared in the Middle Ages. It was abolished in 1789 during the French Revolution, but it reappeared in 1814 at the time of the Bourbon Restoration which followed the fall of the First French Empire...
, Ladrón Íñiguez was first among them. Also according to Garibay, Ladrón took part in the reconquest
Reconquista
The Reconquista was a period of almost 800 years in the Middle Ages during which several Christian kingdoms succeeded in retaking the Muslim-controlled areas of the Iberian Peninsula broadly known as Al-Andalus...
of Tudela
Tudela, Navarre
Tudela is a municipality in Spain, the second city of the autonomous community of Navarre. Its population is around 35,000. Tudela is sited in the Ebro valley. Fast trains running on two-track electrified railways serve the city and two freeways join close to it...
in 1114. The story of his founding the majorat
Majorat
Majorat is the right of succession to property according to age . A majorat would be inherited by the oldest son, or if there was no son, the nearest relative. This law existed in some of the European countries and was designed to prevent the distribution of wealthy estates between many members of...
of Oñate
Oñate
Oñate is an older spelling of Oñati, a town in Gipuzkoa, SpainIt is also a Basque surname and may refer to:* Juan de Oñate, an explorer and early governor of the New Spain province of New Mexico* Cristóbal de Oñate, a conquistador and father of Juan de Oñate...
(which he supposedly willed to his son) in 1149, along with his wife Teresa, a daughter of the viscount of Soule
Soule
Soule is a former viscounty and French province and part of the present day Pyrénées-Atlantiques département...
and Mauléon
Mauléon
Mauléon is the name or part of the name of several communes in France:* Mauléon, in the Deux-Sèvres département* Mauléon-Licharre, in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques département...
, is also apocryphal.
Primary sources
- Glenn Edward Lipskey (1972), The Chronicle of Alfonso the Emperor: A Translation of the Chronica Adefonsi imperatoris, with Study and Notes, PhD dissertation, Northwestern UniversityNorthwestern UniversityNorthwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
. - Carmen Orcástegui Gros (1985), "Crónica de San Juan de la Peña (Versión aragonesa)", Cuadernos de Historia Jerónimo Zurita, 51–52 (Zaragoza: Institución «Fernando el Católico»), 419–569.